Commentary, sarcasm and snide remarks from a Florida resident of over thirty years. Being a glutton for punishment is a requirement for residency here.
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Thursday, March 01, 2007

Florida the rules are different here Chapter LXXXVII

The owner of an internet porn site wants to be a member of the Davie City Council. Mr. Busey admits the site is his own and sees no problem between that and his candidacy. Hey Mr. Busey seems to be good at keeping things in plain sight, that may be a welcome change from other local politicians who have much to keep out of public view.

A Davie Town Council candidate admitted on Wednesday he owned an Internet pornography site, but said it has no bearing on whether he should be elected on March 13.

"It's registered to me and I developed the page ... [But] this is a personal issue involving consenting adults. This campaign should be about issues," said Philip Busey, who is running for the District 3 seat in western Davie.

The combative campaign pits Busey, an associate professor at the University of Florida, against incumbent council member Susan Starkey and former council member Terry Santini, an accountant.

Shortly after Busey was questioned about the site Wednesday, it was altered to feature links to Miami Beach tourism Web addresses.

"I changed the content on them so it is no longer objectionable," said Busey, who teaches and researches turfgrass science. "There are no links to porno. I have 30 or 40 other domains and none are problematic now. They are mostly about turf."

The Web site is registered to a Fort Lauderdale post office box that Busey also uses for Internet education sites related to his work at UF's Davie agricultural school campus.

Van Waddill, director of the campus, could not be reached for comment despite two messages left on his cell phone.

Busey said he registered the site almost eight years ago to advocate for nudism on Florida's beaches. He said the site was never used for that purpose, but instead was changed to a pornography link. He declined to say why.

"I don't think it is relevant in this campaign," said Busey, whose platform includes preserving mobile home parks, encouraging more affordable homes and blocking The Commons retail/office project along Interstate 75.

His two opponents said his side business was an issue.

"Personal lives do reflect on political lives," Santini said when told of the site.

"I know I wouldn't vote for a candidate with this type of business," said incumbent Starkey.

Busey is also a Democratic Party committeeman responsible for organizing party members in Precinct 27T.

"He is an elected committeeman. The last time I checked, running nude Web sites is not a rationale for removal from the post," said Broward Democratic Chairman Mitch Ceasar.

Busey said he "makes pennies or maybe a dollar a day" every time a viewer clicks on one of his Web site's links. He said he earned $1.37 on Tuesday and 32 cents on Monday.

Domain name registration records indicate the site is managed by a European company and is for sale.